Memorization by Music

Words set to Music is indisputably the best method to memorize anything. Every person witnesses this fact in that they can remember songs from their youth, even some they want to get rid of. My dad taught me the books of the New Testament at 5 years old to the tune of Yankee Doodle Dandy. I still remember that song to this day (It’s available on the app). It is a powerful tool that we have at our disposal, the ability to memorize with music. When we were young and foolish we memorized the lyrics to countless songs that this world used to teach us doctrine. But for the Christian we turn the tables and use music to instill the doctrine the Bible teaches into our children, and into our own hearts.

My Story

I have memorized Psalms 1-34, 100,117-121, 133, 139, 150 Proverbs 1, 3, 23, 31, Matthew 5-7 (Sermon on the Mount), John 15 (The True Vine), Romans 8, 1 Corinthians 13, Ephesians 6, Philemon, the book of 1 Peter, Jude, and these are only the ones I’m confident I could recite to you on a whim if you asked me. Others I’ve memorized are the book of James, Colossians, Romans 12, Psalm 55, Psalm 91, Psalm 62, Psalm 81, and several other Psalms I’ve listen to so much I’ve memorized but don’t even recognize the melody to the titles! That doesn’t include partial chapters including pieces of Ecclesiastes, many other Psalms, the book of Ephesians, 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, and Titus, along with salvation verses and other non-music verses learned from preaching.

If you counted, that’s around 80 chapters of the Bible, and out of those 80, 67 of them are by music.

67.

And I haven’t been focusing on memorization up until recently again, yet these songs are still strong in my memory, or they only need a note or two to cue up the whole song. Christian, do you want to be wise? Memorize the Bible. Do you want help? use the scripture we have that is set to music on the faithful word application. There are over 200 chapters of the Bible to music on the app, a few duplicates, but mostly unique chapters of the Bible done by several artists. When I memorize a lot of music, I don’t memorize by verse, I memorize by chapter. It’s easy to tell something that in Psalm 19 the Bible says that the heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament showeth his handiwork. And If I flip in my Bible it only takes a second or two longer to find that particular part of the Psalm (in this instance it’s the first verse).

I have been blessed to do a lot for the Lord because in part of a lot of the wisdom of the Word of God I have hidden in my heart. How do you think God blesses Pastor Anderson? It’s because he knows the Word of God in his heart and follows it. I’ve noticed that the times we get the most passionate about the word of God is when it’s coming from our hearts. I thank Jesus Christ for the precious gift of his Word that we have today, and as I memorize more of it, he can use me even more.

The Method

Here’s how it works. God created music in part as a tool to help keep things with us in memory. The Bible says that when God knew that the children of Israel would rebel he gave them a song that because they were still singing and it stuck with them, that it would witness against them:

“Now therefore write ye this song for you, and teach it the children of Israel: put it in their mouths, that this song may be a witness for me against the children of Israel.” Deut 31:19

Even the Secular world will agree that music sticks with you whether you like it or not. Check out a study done here on music that plays itself in your brain study. This study may differ on how it happens and why, but all their research is based on one fact they all witness by multiple experiences, songs get stuck in our heads. The Lord Jesus knew what he was doing when he told the children of Israel this song because he knew that it would play in the back of their heads and stay with them throughout their lives and they would repeat it to their children all the way to the generation that would experience that judgment.

What is going to run through your head all day? Are you going to fill your mind with Scripture set to music, or will the world fill it with junk? It will have one. We are made to hold on to music. When the tv comes on you can’t help but memorize the obnoxious jingles of advertisements simply because you are sitting there listening. There is a war for our minds and I’m not listening to the world’s music in my head. Not because it’s not around me, but because my mind is already being filled with the Word of God.

Here’s the challenge to you Christian:

This song is on our app, and it is a beautiful rendition of 1 Corinthians 13. It is in the music section, at the bottom of the list (Sing the KJV), then scroll down in the album till you see New Testament titles. It is an excellent first chapter to memorize. I memorized this in 3 days by listening to it while I worked on aircraft during the day and singing along as I learned the song. Learn this song in the next 3 days and prove to yourself that this method works and is powerful. You will be doing yourself a favor in hiding God’s Word if your heart. Then come back afterward, and make yourself a goal to memorize another song, and then another.

This is the plan. If you have the ability to listen to the song and sing along during the day, you will easily memorize this chapter of the Bible in 3 days. Take a few days to just meditate on it, and let it sink in, then next week start on another song, perhaps Psalm 1. Do this for one year. Take it seriously, and in 1 year you can memorize around 50 chapters of the Bible. This memorization will be very difficult to leave you, and will solidify very quickly. Going over the song once a week for a few weeks will make sure it’s permanent. This is very simple because all you have to do is sing, and who doesn’t like to sing?

The Lord was looking out for our good in the Bible when he said “Praise ye the Lord.” Over and over again he tells us to worship Him. This is a command of God, and his commandments are not grevious, but they have our good in mind, and one of the special blessings in singing scripture to praise the Lord is the memorization of large amounts of Bible. Get in the habit of praising the Lord every day by singing the KJV. The blessing is amazing.